u/PA_Whiskey_Reviews

I get to do a lot of driving and travel for work. That can sometime help me find market exclusive products. PA gets some Sagamore products, but I’ve been looking for the High Rye Bourbon for a little while now, didn’t realize it was a Maryland only release. Fortunately I had to make a stop down in Maryland last week, and I found it at a random store in my travels.

Sagamore is a smaller Baltimore Maryland based distillery that usually specializes in Rye Whiskey. Founded back in 2013, Sagamore has been putting out a lot of highly regarded ryes, and I think they’ve been moving from sourced distillate to their own. This high rye bourbon pays homage to their heavy rye specialization, while still being a bourbon.

MSRP: ~$50.00

Age Statement: 6 Years Old

ABV: 54% (108 proof)

Mash Bill: 60% Corn, 25% Rye, and 15% Malted Rye. Thinking that the malted rye is what causes some really strong bitter flavors in the palate… never had malted rye in a mash.

I’m going to start with the tasting notes with saying this is a tale of two experiences.. one half is bourbon, the other half is rye/malt.

Nose: This is the bourbon half. Super sweet, very pleasant, full of brown sugar and caramel, with a cherry and spiced apple note in the second half of the nose. Almost reminds me of a Buffalo Trace product, like a BT or ER.

Palate: Now here’s where the rye shines. The first half of the palate is very hot, super cinnamon heavy, with a little bit of tobacco and oak. The oak was surprising for me considering it’s a 6 year, not higher like a 10 or something. The second half of the palate is different even than the first half. I get a heavy bitter note, like someone took espresso beans and burnt them even more. It’s strong, not sure if I really like it or not.

Finish: The burnt espresso makes way for a more oaky and leather/tobacco note on the finish. Little less bitter but still neither sweet nor spicy.

I would rate this as a 5.5 on the T8KE scale (right below). It’s a good value and has a ton of complexity, but it doesn’t exactly align with my palate, and man is that bitter note really bitter.. if this is just the result of a neck pour (I feel like I always am reviewing off neck pours), maybe it’ll soften the bitter note with time and air, and I’d rate it better. It really is super complex and the flavors transition well, but I would have preferred some sweeter notes in that complexity. Is this just a neck pour problem? Maybe it’s just a bottle that doesn’t align with my palate? Let me know in the comments if you’ve had this before and what you think about the bottle/the distillery!

Cheers!

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Going to keep this intro quick, as my wife and I just got a puppy, and he takes a lot of work. I actually thought I was only getting dog food notes in this pour, but realized I was just too close to where we store the dog food, lol.

I honestly don't know if I've really had any Jim Beam products before, other than the OGD bonded, and a sip of Knob Creek 12. My friend has a Bookers from late '25 or early '26, can't quite remember which.. I know this OGD is from a high rye mashbill, and the OGD 114 SiB 7 year is supposed to be a nice step up from the base OGD products. But all that to say, I'm going in mostly blind for this one.

MSRP: ~$50.00

Age Statement: 7 Years Old

ABV: 57% (114 proof)

Nose: Tastes like what I'd assume a high rye bourbon tastes like. Sweetness and spice mixed together, pretty strong on the nose but lacking the unpleasant ethanol of a harsh barrel proof product. Getting some caramel/brown sugar sweetness, but definitely also a strong pepper/cinnamon note in there. Oak lingers in the background.

Palate: Candied nuts, with some spice sprinkled in there. I guess Beam can be known for that note? Very full of flavor, there is a high viscosity to the pour. I'm also getting some kind of buttery note in there too. Very pleasant. Very minor oaky/leathery note, but it is there and I like how it is mixed into the rest of the notes on the palate.

Finish: Long, still very flavorful. The sweetness and nutty note dies off quickly but the spice comes out, as well as the oak. I'd say the pour transitions from sweet, to complex, to spicy and oaky towards the end. Never a harsh transition, and the flavors mingle well together.

I would rate this as a 7 on the T8KE scale (below). Great bourbon, and even at $50, still a great value. I think the age statement brings out more of a maturity, complexity, and approachability I haven't seen in other reviews of base OGD products. This is a blatant step up from the OGD Bonded, which is the only other OGD I've tried. If you've had the plain 114, how do these two compare other than price? Let me know what you've thought of this in the comments. I do plan on getting another one of these once this one runs out. For me, this is a great entry into the Beam lineup. Let me know in the comments what other Beam products I may like, maybe other than the OGD. I know the Knob Creek 12 is a hit, as well as Bookers (some batches).

Cheers!

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Figured I'd finish up reviews on my Bowman collection with the one bottle that most people are able to find.. the plain jane Bowman Brothers Small Batch. It's cheaper, aged for fewer years, and much lower proof than some of the other Bowman products I've had reviews on. BUT, this is certainly not a garbage product. After all, they do take this mash and age it up or proof it up for some of their more highly sought after products, so the bones must be good with this mash.

A Smith Bowman is owned by Sazerac, meaning they’re a sister distillery of Buffalo Trace. The distillate comes from ‘a sister distillery’ (source: tour guide back in November 2024). However, the tour guide wouldn’t explicitly say whether or not it was BT. After a little research on old’ reliable, Google, it confirmed that the distillate comes from Buffalo Trace. Allegedly it’s neither Buffalo Trace’s mash bill #1 or #2, but is likely some mixture of the two, or something different altogether, but nevertheless, a BT distillate. A Smith Bowman does distill the sourced distillate one more time in their own copper stills. A Smith Bowman uses Cumberland Cooperage, a cooperage that also supplies barrels to Buffalo Trace. Many claim to get a lot of similar notes when trying Bowman bourbons. With the distillery using similar juice and the same barrels, it makes sense why.

MSRP: ~$35.00

Age Statement: NAS officially, but it looks like the internet is telling me 6-7 years.

ABV: 45% (90 proof)

Nose: Seems similar to Buffalo Trace, I wonder if that's placebo affect or if it actually has a similar nose.. very sweet, full of a brown sugar and caramel nose (I think that's just what I get when something is sweet but not just fruity). There is a lingering green apple note in there as well, honestly similar to the Eagle Rare I had a while ago. Nothing too strong, although I did just open this bottle and there is a little bit more ethanol on this pour than 'non neck' pours I've had of this bourbon before.

Palate: First thing I get is more of a red apple note, followed by the sugary sweetness I come to expect out of a high corn mash bill. Not the most complex, but very sweet, approachable, and an enjoyable pour all around. A little oak and ethanol accompanies these notes, although I think that will soften over time.

Finish: Also not super complex, and not super long. I don't think that there's many new tasting notes if any at all, just more of the brown sugar, caramel, and some fruit. If anything, maybe the apple notes turned more into a cherry? The ethanol and oak kind of dies down from what little I got on the palate.

I would rate this as a 5.5 on the T8KE scale (below). Good, but definitely a notch below my John J Bowman, rated at 6.5. The bottle was delicious and full of flavor, but lack of complexity left a little something to be desired. Of course, I do love sweet bourbon, but maybe I'm starting to branch out a little bit because I just felt like something was missing. Obviously I shouldn't be comparing the small batch to the Abraham Bowman American Oak (aged at least 4 years more and about 45 proof points higher), and certainly not the Abraham Bowman Rye. However, when comparing this Small Batch to the John J Bowman, the youth of this probably leads to only a few (albeit pleasant) tasting notes. If you're striking out with Buffalo Trace, and your area doesn't have all the Benchmark products, I'd say this is a great introduction to that sweet BT mash bill, with a nonexistent secondary, and relatively high availability! Let me know what you think, how it compares to BT, and how you compare it to the JJB Single Barrel in the comments.

Cheers!

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

It’s been a while since my last review. Between work, Summer travel, and not drinking or being on Reddit quite as much, I’ve been slowing down on the reviews. But I’m getting back into it now with a bottle I was lucky enough to win a lottery for back in May! Bowman usually doesn’t release rye whiskey, but when they do, it’s going to be highly sought after stuff.

The Abraham Bowman product within A Smith Bowman's lineup is a very limited release, just like the Cask Strength Bowman bottles. Abraham Bowman is used as an experimental product line that tries different barrel oak types, aging techniques, and mash bills. Most recently, Abraham Bowman has been releasing a subcategory, the Oak Series. Starting with French Oak, they've released American Oak and Hungarian Oak as well. There are several, older releases as well that I've never heard of prior to researching this line for this review. Some releases such as the Coffee Finished Bourbon, Fourth Use Barrel, and Gingerbread Cocoa Finished Bourbon stand out as some really unique offerings. These usually go up for a lottery for about a week and the winners need to go to the Bowman Distillery to pick up their lottery winning. I believe this is the second rye they’ve ever put out, both have been under this Abraham Bowman label. One thing to note too is I love how Bowman does their lotteries. One whole week to sign up, pretty loose guidelines, and the prices of the bottles is very reasonable. It also seems like there’s a decent amount of bottles to go around, which is always great!

A Smith Bowman is owned by Sazerac, meaning they’re a sister distillery of Buffalo Trace. The distillate comes from ‘a sister distillery’ (source: tour guide back in November 2024). Google is quick to tell you that it’s Buffalo Trace. It’s a little unclear how the normal Bowman bourbon is blended, not sure if it’s just mash bill 1 or a blend of 1 and 2. Most of their products use the “sister distillery distillate”, but I’m not entirely sure about this rye. Not sure if it’s the same as Sazerac rye or not. If you know, let me know in the comments.

MSRP: ~$80.00. It looks like this goes for a few hundred on secondary online right now.

Age Statement: 12 years old

ABV: 55% (110 proof)

Mash Bill: N/A. Did it come from BT or Sazerac? No idea.

Nose: Very floral, not a ton of spice like I’d expect on a rye. I also get a few sweeter notes, like a vanilla. There is not a ton of ethanol on this nose, even being a neck pour. The flavors are strong even on the nose without really punching you with that alcohol flavor.

Palate: Carrying over a richness in flavor from the nose. Not a ton of bite for being 110 proof. The floral notes are prevalent in the front of the palate, but do give way to more baking spices - hitting all the bases on the “classic rye” flavors. There is still a sweetness (vanilla giving way to more caramel?) that I haven’t experienced in my limited rye drinking. My only complaint is I get some weird Play-Doh flavor towards the back end of the palate. Not really sure I’ve experienced it before, and not sure I like it. Could it just be the neck pour? Is this a typical thing in a higher aged, higher proof rye?

Finish: The Play-Doh note eventually gives way to more floral, coming full circle. The finish is long and the whiskey is viscous, so it’s definitely pleasant once that bad note goes away.. the finish is still sweet but I do feel like it’s the most one dimensional compared to the nose and palate.

Overall, this was pleasant, and I liked it for a rye, but I don’t know if this is even my favorite rye. For what it is, and for my preferences towards sweeter bourbon, I liked it objectively, but the Play Doh note kind of threw me off. If you took that out, I probably would have really enjoyed it more. I’d give this one a 6 on the T8KE scale but am definitely going to revisit in a few months to see if the weird note is a neck pour thing or if I ate something weird to influence my palate. If you like Bowman, or ryes in general, I’d highly recommend looking for a reasonably priced bottle or pour, but wouldn’t spend too much on a bottle. Let me know in the comments what all Bowman releases you’ve tried and if any of the other experimental releases are any good!

Cheers!

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

My last entry into my Texas bourbon foray is sure to finish with a bang! I'm going to keep this one short (hopefully), but this is my first time trying Garrison Brothers, and also my first time trying a whiskey over 140 proof! This unsurprisingly packed a major punch, but was full of flavor. I think I'm liking these barrel proof offerings more and more.

Garrison Brothers, the second major Texas distillery I know of (first one obviously being Still Austin), is a brand I've typically avoided. Part of that is due to the fact that they never have anything in PA (the downside of the FWGS system), and partially because all the releases I've seen/read about here have a huge price tag, aren't super old, and have a relatively 'off palate' profile. I've said it several times in my reviews, but I'm pretty basic in my preferences for whiskey. I like caramel, brown sugar, and anything sweet and simple. While I'm getting more into 'funky' profiles, rye spices, etc.. I still gravitate towards the classic bourbon. In the spirit of trying new things and expanding my horizons, I'm going into this tasting with an open mind.

Garrison Brothers, located outside of Austin/San Antonio, is the first Texas (legal) distillery. They started out in the early 2000s, and continue to be (I think?) a family run distillery that focuses on the grain to glass, and it looks like the Cowboy Bourbon is one of their most popular releases each year. The Cowboy Bourbon also looks like it's consistently in the hazmat range, which is pretty cool.

Now to the bottle.

Price: $280 is MSRP, does seem super steep.

Age: 6 years old

ABV: 70.1%

Mashbill: Undisclosed from what I can see.

Nose: PUNCHES you in the face. Super strong red fruit, oak, and a little bit of funk.

Palate: Deep molasses and cherries dominate the palate. There is a presence of spices in here, and a little barrel funk. This 'funk' note is not my favorite but thankfully it isn't super strong in a really strong pour. As you can imagine, this palate is incredibly strong, being 140 proof!

Finish: Lasts forever, also makes sense. There is some chocolate and caramel that shine over the red fruit.

Overall, this was a very solid pour. Not the most complex, but the flavors that I do get are incredibly rich/strong. I wasn't a huge fan of the oak/funk note I was getting but that wasn't too bad to be honest. I'm glad I didn't have to pay ~$300 for this as I'm in the 'the more you pay, the more diminishing returns' camp, but am super thankful for people that let me try! I would probably rate this as a 8 on the T8KE scale, super flavorful but lacking in complexity a little bit. I do think this is a little low but I feel as if I pigeonholed myself a little bit with previous rankings on bottles. Nonetheless, this is an amazing pour, I would recommend you try if you can get your hands on some!!

Well, that's the end of my mini Texas whiskey series, huge thanks again for u/southern-rip3018 's generosity for these! I have some great pours that I'll be trying over the next couple weeks so stay tuned. In the meantime, cheers and have a great weekend!

Super excited to have gotten one of these here in PA. They sold out almost immediately but fortunately I was able to swing by the store in the morning. Got to try this against the JD10 B4 and the JD12 B5. It’s similar in ways to the 12 but has way more flavor with that extra proof. Lot of butterscotch, brown sugar, red fruit, and a little oak. Review to follow, such a great pour!!

My penultimate entry to this mini Texas whiskey 'series' (u/southern-rip3018 you're the man!) and final Still Austin review for the foreseeable future, Tanager II (2025) is here! Still Austin needs no introduction if you've been following my page recently, but here's a quick synopsis. Still Austin, based in Austin TX, is one of the premier Texas distilleries, premier 'craft' distilleries, and has been releasing some incredibly hyped bottles over the past couple years, especially with the release of the DRS20 (I'll never see it but man can I dream!). Still Austin focuses on every aspect of the distillation process, from 100% Texas grains, to their massive column still, to slow water reduction in the aging process, and strong branding (I love a good label), and the result really shows in the quality of whiskey they're putting out. I've now been lucky enough to try their core lineup, their BiB lineup, and finally the Tanager, so most if not all of their regular releases. I've got to say that even though the price is a little higher than a legacy distillery for the age of the products, the quality is absolutely there for the price. Sounds like a paid promo, I know. It's not, their stuff is just that good!!

The Tanager release presents as a cigar blend bourbon, aged for 6 years with some of the distilleries best hand picked barrels. What's also unique about this is that it's a blend of the red, blue, and white corn, so different mash from the other whiskeys as far as I know. This also goes through Petites Eaux, which is also unique from the rest of Still Austin's releases. Petites Eaux uses barrel aged water and adds it to the final aged product, rather than normal water, to proof the final product down to the desired proof.

That's enough from me, let's get into some bottle specs..

MSRP: ~$150.00. This does have a secondary presence, not sure the prices on it there.

Age: 6 years. This should drink more like a 12 year if everything I've read about Texas whiskey is true...

ABV: 53.75% (107.5 proof).

Mashbill: 53% Blue Corn Bourbon, 25% Red Corn Bourbon, and 22% White Corn Bourbon. This isn't quite a mash bill as it is a blend of different bourbons with different mashes, so I would assume it's a mixture of at least 50% corn (combination of blue, red, white), with rye and malted barley. I also would imagine the rye to be somewhere in the 25-30% range, as their website calls this a 'high rye bourbon'.. Also, I think most of their products are about 5% malted barley, so someone smarter than me can do the math to figure out the exact mash bill maybe..

Nose: Strong, but not a ton of ethanol/burn. Lot of fruit, both cherries, and raspberries. I do get some of the honey that is called out in the 'official' notes, and I definitely see the cream note. This looks and smells like a very oily whiskey. Overall the most approachable, complex nose I've had on a Still Austin product.

Palate: Way more flavors come out on the palate. More fruits, apple, some grape shine. The raspberry note crescendos. There is some rye spice, pepper, baking spices in there too. The blend does a great job of marrying both the fruit and spices together. There is some more sweetness, but not in a brown sugar/caramel way that I'm usually looking for in a bourbon. There is some sugar, like a butterscotch/honey note.

Finish: Long, full of flavor. I could tell this was a very viscous pour, probably at least partially because of the Petities Eaux. Not a lot of new flavors, the rye spices/influence probably take over more than they did in the palate. Other than that, just a great pour!

Overall, this is by far my favorite of the Still Austin products I've been able to try. This had all the flavor of the cask strength products and all the complexity of the Bottled in Bond releases. I would absolutely say it's worth the money, and I do understand the hype around it. I will definitely be looking for Tanager III this year, hopefully I can score a bottle. To be honest, I don't usually hunt for cigar blend bottles, as usually the tasting notes aren't really what I look for, nor do I drink whiskey and smoke cigars too often. However, this may have changed my opinion on these. I could see this being paired well with a cigar. If I can get a bottle of my own, I would at least try the pairing. Let me know your thoughts about Tanager if you've ever had it. I seriously recommend at least trying it at a bar or from a friend if you can. I'd rate this at a 9 on the T8KE scale. This is the peak of Texas whiskey to me, maybe close to the peak of all whiskey currently coming out IMO. Cheers!

Going back to the Texas whiskey 'series' (huge thanks again to u/southern-rip3018 ). Last in the Still Austin BiB line, but certainly not least, we have the Fall release. This is the same mash as the standard bourbon, but just aged up a little bit. I'm expecting this to taste similar but maybe be a little softer, have a little more oak, all the things you'd expect from a 2 year to 7 year age statement increase. I'll give a little comparison at the end to compare my initial thoughts on this BiB option to the normal Musician/CS Bourbon. I'm also not going to copy more text from previous reviews, especially for this series, so if you're looking to find more info on Still Austin and their Bottled in Bond seasonal program, check out some of my earlier reviews on the Blue Corn and Red Corn, and the Rye too!.

Let's get right into it!

MSRP: ~$80.00.

Age: At least 7 years. This is currently the oldest of the BiB lineup, but this Summer and Winter the Red and Blue corn will have 7 year age statements, and this bottle will be 8 years old this year! Super exciting to see these age statements continue to creep up.

ABV: 50% (100 proof).

Mashbill: 70% corn, 25% rye, 5% malter barley

Nose: A lot of oak and leather, which is expected especially when compared to the lower aged stuff. There's a little bit of that classic bourbon caramel and brown sugar but certainly in the background. I'm also getting a strong red fruit note, like a rich cherry.

Palate: On the first sip, very approachable, much less ethanol and 'burn' compared to the 2 year product. Like the 2 year products, more of the red fruit, and the cherry really dominates, even over a strong yet pleasant oak presence. Unlike the 'young' bourbon with the same mash, there is significantly less spice on the palate, but it is still there. Think the same palate notes as the CS Bourbon but swap out the pepper and spices for oak and leather. The caramel and brown sugar give out to a more butterscotch/chocolate note.

Finish: Long, comparable in length to the 6 year Red and Blue corn releases. While not as strong of a flavor profile on the finish, it does stay for quite a while. Not a whole lot to report in terms of tasting notes here.

Overall, this pour was significantly better, more complex, stronger flavors than the standard Musician, and I'd probably say it's more complex and marginally better than the CS Bourbon. Now, I'm pretty biased toward the CS Bourbon, I really like that bottle, FYI. But, compared to the base bourbon products that Still Austin is putting out, I do think this is a step above. That's a pretty big reason why I'm putting this at a 7.5 on the T8KE scale. Now, don't give me too much grief for ranking this over the Red Corn, since I might actually like the Red Corn a little bit better actually.. I would say that the Red Corn is more interesting because it was a little more off profile for a Still Austin product compared to this 7 Year Fall Release, but the 7 Year Fall Release might be objectively a little better? I don't know, let me know what you think in the comments about this BiB series and what you think is the best. I'd love to hear some discussion on people's favorites and least favorites.

Anyway, I have a couple more reviews queued up on the Texas whiskey series, then I'll have to find more whiskeys to try/purchase, any suggestions are welcome. Thanks to anyone for reading this whole rambling, and until next time, cheers!